I think it is safe to say that as a society, we are fairly numbers driven when measuring how successful we’ve been on a project. Certainly, this is true of investors when analyzing year-end reports or the success of any fundraiser. A friend of mine reminded me of what his father always used to say. “Money may not be the most important thing, but it’s way ahead of whatever is in second.” Before we dissect this statement, let’s look at what we did in The Foundation from a numbers perspective for the year 2024/2025.

The Foundation raised more than $569 million this year! In addition, it surpassed the milestone goal of $2 billion dollars for the Rotary Endowment. Those are incredible numbers that should be celebrated as they are something we all can be proud of being a part of. Without question, those are big dollars. Revisiting my friend’s father’s statement, I suppose we could stop the discussion right there and pat ourselves on the back. But we can’t stop there, we’re Rotarians and our motto really says it all as to what we are truly about. “Service Above Self." We repeat that phrase at every gathering. Not because it’s just what we say, but rather because it always reminds us of who we are as Rotarians. Therefore, it’s not the dollars that are important by themselves, that’s just the start. What’s more important is what we do with those dollars to transform the world and our communities into something better.

So, what did we DO with those dollars as a Foundation? The Rotary Foundation awarded 1,424 global grants, 468 district grants, and 74 disaster response grants. What else was accomplished? We renewed our agreement with the Gates Foundation, which is a total recommitment to finishing the fight to end Polio. By the way, are you ready for World Polio Day on October 24? Make sure your club is ready to put on its event and be sure to register your event.

Additionally, as Rotarians, we are fully committed to bringing peace to the world as The Foundation awarded the prestigious “Programs of Scale” grant to “The Pathways to Peace and Prosperity in Colombia."

So, let’s revisit that statement of my friend’s father. Yes, money is important, but as Rotarians we know it’s NOT the dollars themselves, it’s what we do with them that makes them important. We should be very pleased with what we did last year, now let’s make this year even better. For as I always like to say, “Let’s continue to work together to make our Foundation stronger as it reaches greater heights.” 

If I personally can assist you in any way, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me via cell or email. Unite for good!